I Am Beyond Reality
by SLLS
Summary: A hoax amongst friends doesn't go to plan, creating fear in Derry once again. "A word from the wise..."


The stench of the sewer was overwhelming and Bradley gagged, his foot sliding slowly over a banana peel, feeling it squelch under his boot

**I Am Beyond Reality**

**Disclaimer: These characters are certainly not mine (but I like to think Pennywise was inspired by my sister) so please don't sue me. Pretty please. **

**Authors Note: Obviously based on IT, no spoilers involved as far as I know. It's based after the film. I'm not quite sure to be honest if this is a one-shot or maybe more, I'll see what you all think before deciding. I look forward to any reviews.**

The stench of the sewer was overwhelming and Bradley gagged, his foot sliding slowly over a banana peel, feeling it squelch under his boot. Water steadily dripped from the grates high above, the occasional one landing gently on his head, running the make up down his thin gaunt face. Rubbing his eyes as the eyeliner irritated, he smudged black down his face and then thoroughly wiped his hands on his pants. "Gross…" He grumbled, stooping to duck below a worn pipe. He had grown accustomed to the creaking noises and that of the scurrying rats, but the faint whisper of wind in the tunnels raised his hair, causing him to shiver.

"Bradders you down there yet?" A voice startled him from above. Bradley squinted into the darkness to make out a couple of shapes above him, staring eagerly through the grate. A wad of chewing gum dropped and hit him on the shoulder. Brushing it off and standing on a pipe, he pulled out a torch he had hidden in his oversized pockets, and shone it up at the figures. "Hey man! Turn it off! Don't want to ruin the surprise now do ya?"

The voice was louder this time and Bradley recognised it as his best mate, George. "Did you have to spit gum at me? It's disgusting down here. It's wet…" His voice trailed off as he turned the torch off, holding it firmly at his side.

"Bradders you're in a sewer, it's gonna be wet. And disgusting." He heard voices begin to laugh and snicker from above and frowned, wiping another drip off his forehead absently.

"How far am I away from the park? Feels like I've been walking for ages." Bradley climbed down from the pipe and sat on it, but not before giving it a quick brush off with his gloved hand. He didn't want anymore surprises.

George knelt down closer to the grate, and surveyed the area around him. "About a hundred yards. If you keep going you should end up at a dead end, right underneath the swing set. Lot of kids hanging round that today. Sure going to give them a nice treat." He snickered at his remark and pulled a packet out of his pocket, hovering it over the grate before dropping it onto Bradley's lap below.

"Balloons? Isn't the clown costume enough?" He self consciously smoothed down the red hair which protruded from his wig. "It's really hot in this costume anyway and blowing up balloons-"

"Don't you do anything but whinge?" Now standing, George shoved his hands deep into his pocket, rummaged around for a moment before pulling out a cigarette and placing it delicately in his mouth. "I thought you volunteered for this job anyhow."

"No, I was the only one who could fit into the costume."

"Yeah yeah, same thing really." Lighting up his cigarette, George chucked the match down the drain at Bradley. He watched Bradley flutter to discard the match, which had landed on his lap, before leaving.

Sighing, Bradley opened up the bag of balloons and grumbled to himself. He could hear George in the distance, and all his other friends, laughing. Probably at what an idiot he was being. No one was going to fall for this stunt, not since the culprit had died. Once the fear stopped and Henry was found out, it had all ended as quickly as the bastard had begun.

A rattling came from the pipe behind Bradley and he spun around quickly, fearing a rat was approaching. Filthy vermin. The noise stopped inches from him, followed closely by a thick smoke with a light in the distance. At first Bradley thought George's match had caught light to some rubbish, but on second thoughts, he recognised the bright beam as a torchlight. "Thank God…" He exclaimed, "I knew you weren't going to go through-" He paused, his mouth widening as the beam practically engulfed him. The torch in his hand dropped to the floor and clicked on, revealing nothing there.

…

"Man when he turns up and the fun starts…" George stubbed out his cigarette on a climbing pole beside him, before rubbing his hands together expectantly. "Hey Chris you got the camcorder?" His friend held his hand up with the camcorder before moving closer to the swing set. Teenage girls were sat on the swings, giggling and posing. One of the girls paused momentarily and looked down at the grate leading to the sewer which sat beneath them. A loud banging followed by a cackle caused them to scream wildly. Chris moved in closer with the recorder, a large smile on his face as he caught a glimpse of the clown wig, followed by a made up face.

"Christ Brad, they did some good make up on you, huh? Smile for the camera dude, we got them good and proper." Chris bent down and filmed the clown, who smiled widely revealing razor sharp teeth.

George ran over the grate and knelt down, his eyes watering form hysterics. "My side… kills… need air…" He continued to laugh for a moment before calming down and wiping the tears from his face. "Didn't you find that funny Bradders. That was classic!"

"Fear. That's all I needed. And you helped me get that back. That slight uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach, eating away at you. I felt it. You can try and hide it but I am beyond reality. I am everything." The clown uttered, his eyes widening with his smile. He began to blow up a red balloon, its contours trying to bulge out beneath the grate bars. Some how it got through. Floating slowly up into the sky, a tug on the string kept it level with George and Chris.

"How did you do that mate? Cool next time we'll send the balloon up first then-" George's words were cut short by a small giggle from the clown.

"A word from the wise from your friend, Pennywise." Suddenly the clowns head ripped through the bars and began to laugh manically. The balloon burst and sprayed the surrounding area with blood. George and Chris were huddled on the floor after falling backwards with the balloons force. Their faces stained in blood, they managed to drag each other up and run, only pausing to turn back at the park entrance. The clown had gone and so had the balloon but the sickly blood remained, running it's way down the swing set and running into the sewer.

…

Later that day the remains of Bradley were carried out from the sewer into the park. His blood had been completely drained and all that was left of the boy was loose skin, his muscles and organs removed. As his family looked on, a search was conducted of the surrounding area, including the sewer for the missing organs. Nothing was found, apart from the empty packet of balloons and a charred clown's wig. It was only several weeks later when the next body was found, that of George Malk, that the situation really hit home with the Derry. The word that haunted them for years flooded back, just as they had been etched in George's blood across his bedroom wall:_ PENNYWISE._


End file.
